1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to fiber optic cables, and in particular, to an assembly for providing strain-relief for field-installable connectors for fiber optic cables.
2. Technical Background
Optical fibers are widely used in a variety of applications, including the telecommunications industry in which optical fibers are employed in a number of telephony and data transmission applications. Due, at least in part, to the extremely wide bandwidth and the low noise operation provided by optical fibers, the use of optical fibers and the variety of applications in which optical fibers are used are continuing to increase. For example, optical fibers no longer serve as merely a medium for long distance signal transmission, but are being increasingly routed directly to the home or, in some instances, directly to a desk or other work location.
The ever increasing and varied use of optical fibers has spurred the use of field installable optical fiber connectors. Field installable optical fiber connectors are used to terminate the ends of optical fibers, and enable quicker connection and disconnection than fusion splicing. A typical connector holds the end of each optical fiber in a ferrule. The connector aligns the core of the two fibers so that light can pass between the fiber ends, and provides a mechanical coupling to hold the two fiber ends together. Connectors have traditionally been one of the main concerns in using fiber optic systems because they introduce loss and because different connector types were typically not compatible. While the use of connectors was once problematic, manufacturers have standardized and simplified them greatly. This increasing user-friendliness has contributed to the increase in the use of fiber optic systems.
Current field installable connectors are designed to be installed and strain relieved on fiber cables or fiber smaller than 2.9 mm. Common cable/fiber sizes are 900 μm tight-buffered fiber and 2.9 mm jacketed cable. A typical 2.9 mm jacketed cable consists of 900 μm tight-buffered fiber surrounded by aramid yarn and a thin walled jacket. A need exists for fiber optic cables having larger fiber optic cables. Unfortunately, installing field-installable connectors directly onto larger fiber optic cables is problematic given conventional connector designs. Therefore, a need exists for new fiber optic connectors adapted for larger fiber optic cables, as well as standard fiber optic cables that may comprise additional and/or alternative structures.